Nixon boy critically injured in Saturday night fire

An 11-year-old boy remains in critical condition at a San Antonio hospital after suffering second- and third-degree burns on 70 percent of his body during a Saturday, Feb. 22 house fire near Nixon.

Gonzales County Fire Marshall Jimmy Harless said the blaze happened at about 11:30 p.m. Saturday at a mobile home residence off County Road 183 outside Nixon. A father and son had been sleeping in the master bedroom of the mobile home when the fire started in the living room area.

The father initially made it out of the home, but the son attempted to leave through the living room and was caught in the fire, causing him to get severely burned, Harless said. A neighbor came over and attempted to help the father reach the son. Both the neighbor and father were treated for smoke inhalation, with the father being transported to Brooke Army Medical Center by EMS ambulance for further treatment. As of Tuesday, Feb. 25, he was believed to still be at the hospital.

The son was taken by ambulance to University Hospital in San Antonio, which is a Level I trauma center for South Texas, where he was listed in critical condition. Harless said medical staff especially will need to monitor the boy to control the potential for infection due to the severe burns.

Names of the fire victims had not been released as of Tuesday, Feb. 25.

“We haven’t confirmed the origin for the fire, but we haven’t finished our investigation yet,” Harless said. “However, the fire does appear to be accidental with no criminal intent.”

The Nixon Fire and Rescue, Nixon Police Department, Wilson County EMS, Gonzales County EMS and a Gonzales County Sheriff’s deputy all responded to the scene along with Harless.